Red Sox players say Stephen Drew now regrets not taking the qualifying offer when he had the chance. But the veteran players have turned from the idea that the team needs Drew back. That was the case at the beginning of camp, but not since they’ve had a chance to see Will Middlebrooks re-commit himself.

The first part of that — Drew regretting it — is news. You figure that he did not anticipate his offseason being so long. Or the Mets and Yankees, each of whom could really benefit by his presence, being so loathe to go after him.

The second part — the players no longer thinking the team needs Drew back — is something different. It’s not not news, I guess, but it would be more newsworthy for someone three weeks into spring training to admit that the team, as currently structured, is not fine. To do so would be a tacit swipe at the current players and the front office.

Put differently, a Red Sox player is not going to say now that they need Drew. But if the Sox signed Drew tomorrow, they’d all say “wow, great to have him back. Huge addition. We’re so much better now.”

Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reports Thursday that the Orioles “are said to have begun fielding calls of interest” on superstar Manny Machado and “are close to the point of seriously weighing whether to trade him.”

You’d think it would be a no-brainer for the last-place O’s to flip Machado — an impending free agent — for prospects, but Heyman notes there is “still a question whether or not longtime Orioles owner Peter Angelos” will give the go-ahead. One person familiar with the situation put it a “50-50” likelihood. Another suggested that it would take a massive return, which, sure.

Machado entered play Thursday with a sensational .328/.405/.635 batting line, 15 home runs, and an MLB-leading 43 RBI in 49 games. It’d be a real shock if he’s still wearing an O’s uniform by the end of July.

Heyman reported previously that at least nine teams made aggressive plays for Machado this winter, including the Cubs, Phillies, Dodgers, Indians, Diamondbacks, Yankees, Red Sox, White Sox, and Cardinals. A whole lot of those teams still make sense here in late May — maybe all of them except the White Sox.